Rumpelstiltskin - With A Twist
by spooky-fbi
Summary: The original Rumpelstiltskin story, written with a Once Upon A Time twist... guest starring a surprise well known character.


"I tell you, Sire," the old man said, "my daughter has the magic touch. You give her any measure in straw, the next day you will have the same in gold."

The King stroked his beard. "The kingdom does have great need of it. Bring her to me."

"Your Majesty, I am not a wealthy man. Every day I starve. My daughter is all I have in the world."

"Why should you starve if your daughter can spin gold?"

"She is disobedient, my lord, she does not spin. I have greater need for food in my belly than a daughter who will not do as her father commands. Perhaps she will spin for you, Your Majesty. But then I shall be left with nothing…"

The King thought for a moment. If what the old man said was true, this girl would be worth more than all the gold in his palace. "Bring your daughter to me, and in return I shall give you her weight in gold."

xXxXxXxXxXx

"You _sold_ me?!" the girl cried when her father told her the news.

"Hush, child. The situation is not as bleak as you think. The King will take good care of you, of this I am certain. Gone are our days of poverty and starvation."

"What else are you not saying, Father? Why is the King taking me in, what lie have you told him?"

"It does not matter. The King is a lonely old man, I know you can make him want to keep you. He will have little reason to cast you away when he sees your beauty."

The girl narrowed her eyes, but there was little she could do. Besides, a life in the palace would be better than a life on the streets, whatever the King would have her do.

xXxXxXxXxXx

When the old man arrived with his daughter at the palace, the King gave him the gold he promised and took the girl into a room filled with straw. In the centre of the room stood a spinning wheel and a stool. "Your father tells me you have the ability to spin straw into gold, but that you have refused to do it for him. You will not leave this room until all of the straw within it's walls has been spun into gold."

"Your Majesty, what you ask is impossible. No one can spin straw into gold."

"I will hear none of your excuses, child. If you do not spin the straw into gold, then you will remain in this room until you die." With that, the King pushed the girl into the room and locked the door.

xXxXxXxXxXx

The girl had banged on the door and screamed until her throat grew horse, she had even tried spinning the straw into gold, but it was impossible, as she'd suspected. Now she simply sat, not knowing what to do. She scanned the room for some way to escape, but there was only one door in this room, and no windows. She felt tears prickling in her eyes and she let them come, despair filling her heart. She buried her head in her hands and wept.

"You look like you could use some help, dearie"

The girl gasped and looked up. There hadn't been anyone in the room before, but now a strange man with gold, scaly skin and leather pants looked down at her.

"How did you get in here?" she asked, perplexed.

"But that's not the question you should really be asking. The question is, do I have the ability to help you in your predicament?"

"I need someone who can spin straw into gold, but that's impossible."

"Don't be so sure, dearie."

"You can do that?"

The man giggled and nodded.

The girl grew excited. "Yes! Oh, that would be wonderful. Please help me."

"Not so fast, dearie" said the strange man, lifting his finger. "All magic comes with a price."

"But I don't have anything." Said the girl, shaking her head.

"But you will. When the King finds that you have succeeded in your task, he will give you many things. There is one thing in particular that I desire. When it is in your possession, I will return, and you will give it to me. Do we have a deal?"

"Yes." The girl said eagerly, seeing no other course of action. "Anything you want."

The man giggled again, and then took a seat at the spinning wheel and began to spin.

When he'd finished, the girl was ecstatic. "That's amazing!" She exclaimed. "But I don't understand. If there's something you want that the King will give me for doing this, why not simply go to the King yourself and the King will give this item to you directly for spinning the gold."

"The item I want," the man replied mysteriously, "Won't exist until the King gives it to you."

The girl was confused, but decided not to ask any further questions. She banged on the door and told the guard to inform the King that she had completed her task. When the King came into the room, his eyes lit up upon seeing the gold. He was so delighted that he asked for the girl's hand in marriage, and the girl became Queen.

xXxXxXxXxXx

The young Queen enjoyed her new position. As her power grew, so too did her hunger for more of it. Her new husband was not a healthy man, and she saw ahead of her the day that she would take over. She had already ensured that she was in the public eye, and had tributes erected in her name. Her people loved her, and she had formed a personal guard to ensure those who didn't, feared her instead. Within a year, the King was dying and the new Queen held the hearts of her people in her hands, and she had also given birth to a child – a daughter.

The queen looked down at her baby and smiled. This child would never know the wretched poverty that she herself had experienced. Suddenly, the Queen heard a familiar voice emerge from the shadows.

"I take it you're happy with your end of our little bargain, dearie."

"I couldn't be happier." She responded. "I have more than I could ever have dreamed of."

"And my payment?"

She nodded. "Come with me."

She took the man to the royal treasure room, and they both entered. "You may take anything you want from this room, as payment for your services to me."

"Anything I want?" The man tiptoed around the room and wriggled his fingers with glee. Finally he stopped and pointed at the Queens arms, which were wrapped around her infant."

"My bracelet?" she asked. "Well, it is my favourite, but I suppose it will give me an excuse to ask the King to buy me another."

"No, not your bracelet. The child."

The Queen held her baby to her chest in horror. She stepped towards the man in a threatening gesture, her face inches from his. "This room is filled with the most expensive treasures in all the realm. Choose one and get out."

"That's not the deal we made, dearie. I said that the item I wanted wouldn't exist until the King gave it to you. That child is mine."

The queen called out to her guards, who were standing just outside the door. "Seize this man." She ordered as she walked out of the room."

"No one breaks a deal with me!" The man yelled, and in a puff of smoke, the infant disappeared from the Queen's arms and into the arms of the man. The next instant, both the man and the baby were gone.

"No!" The Queen cried in horror. She turned to her guards. "Find him!" she commanded. "And bring me back my daughter!"

xXxXxXxXxXx

The Queen and her guards scoured the lands in search of the mysterious man, but they could not find him. Their search did however lead them to a book, which was said to have belonged to a very powerful man, the Dark One. The book contained an inscription which, when read, would summon him. The Queen hoped that the Dark One could help her track down her daughter and get her back, so she brought the book back to her palace.

The Queen opened the book and read out the name that ran along the side of the first page. "Rumpelstiltskin, I summon thee."

"I take it that you're no longer happy with our deal." Came a familiar voice.

"You! You're the Dark One?"

"The very same" he said with a bow.

"Where is my daughter?"

"Worry you not, the child is safe."

"I want her back."

"I'm sure you do."

"What will it take? I'll give you anything"

"Anything?" Rumpelstiltskin tapped his finger on his chin. "Oh I do so love that word. People so rarely realize what it entails. As you yourself found out, Your Majesty."

The Queen pursed her lips. "Name your price."

"My price," Rumpelstiltskin smiled coyly, "is what I gave you in the first place."

"Gold? The royal treasure room is filled with gold, I already told you you could take whatever you wanted. You want more than one item, fine. Take it all."

"I spin gold, dearie. That's not what I was talking about. No, I mean…" he gestured around the room with his hand, "this life, your royal title, your power. Everything you got when I spun that gold for you. I give you back your daughter, and you give up everything else that the King gave you."

"I'll be back on the streets, living in poverty, begging for food."

"But you'll have your daughter back. The choice is yours."

"Why would you want that? Do you plan to rule the kingdom?"

"I have another deal in progress, someone else who wants to rule the kingdom and has something I want."

The Queen thought for a moment, then: "I have a counter offer. I make this deal with you, and you not only give me my daughter, but you also teach me your magic."

"You want to be my apprentice?"

"Yes."

Rumpelstiltskin smiled and giggled, wriggling his fingers gleefully. "Deal."

As the baby girl appeared in Rumpelstiltskin's arms, the palace and the royal guards evaporated before the Queen's eyes, as did her royal robes, which were replaced by rags. She was no longer a Queen, but a lowly peasant girl. Rumpelstiltskin handed the baby back to the girl, and disappeared.

The girl looked down at her child. "I'm sorry," she whispered, "I ruined everything. But I promise, this is only temporary. I'll find a way to fix this. Some day you will be Queen, as you were born to be. I will find a way, Regina, I swear to you. Whatever it takes, you will be Queen."


End file.
